Facebook buys video-compression startup QuickFire

Facebook said it has acquired video-compression company QuickFire Networks, that could help the social network giant deliver videos more efficiently to their users.

The San Diego-based start-up says it can swiftly convert video formats and use less bandwidth while maintaining the video quality.

“Ultimately our goal has always been to provide a premium quality, immediate, bandwidth-friendly video experience to consumers,” the company said on its website.

The technology should help Facebook consolidate its video focus since people are posting 75 per cent more videos on the site than they did a year ago.

Regarded by some as YouTube’s biggest potential rival, Facebook has been encouraging users to post videos directly to its site, instead of linking to third party video websites. This gives Facebook more control over how the videos can be viewed and allows for more flexibility in terms of advertising.

As of last year, Facebook videos in its users' feeds began playing automatically, delivering content quickly across devices.

A proportion of QuickFire’s employees will join Facebook and the company will wind down operations gradually, according to Craig Lee, CEO of QuickFire.